~ Finding authenticity in ordinary life

It’s beginning to smell a lot like Christmas!

It sure doesn’t look like Christmas around here, but that’s probably the only downside to living in the South… ok one of the few. It was weird getting our Christmas tree in 70 degree weather. This year we went with a Douglas fir. It was only $25! We’d love to support the families that come from South Carolina and sell the trees from their own land on the street corners, but we couldn’t fork over $40 this year for the same thing… I’m shocked that trees cost more in Georgia than in Chicago!

Have you heard of the trick to let the tree soak up a bucket of water after the trunk has been cut down? Resist the urge to start decorating it right away. It will last longer and shed less. We’re keeping ours up the entire Christmas season…as in… up until Epiphany, the real twelfth day of Christmas.

Next year we will hopefully chop down our own. We really wanted to this year, but first year law finals got in the way. Next year we’ll try to get organized earlier. We went to Lowe’s for our tree this year. I grabbed two armloads full of free trimmings while we were there! I had a plan for those babies.

This one here (the nice and full one) is from Trader Joe’s. Tommy surprised me with it when he had to put off our tree shopping because of studying.

The smell is definitely helping me be more in the mood! It fills up the whole house. I love walking in home from work to the sight and the smell!